Explorable augmented reality displays

ABSTRACT

Concepts and technologies are disclosed herein for explorable augmented reality displays. An augmented reality service can receive a request for augmented reality display data. The request can be associated with a device. The augmented reality service can determine a location associated with the device and identify augmented reality data associated with the location. The augmented reality service can provide augmented reality display data to the device.

BACKGROUND

Virtual reality and augmented reality are two computer technologies forviewing synthetic or partially synthetic environments. Virtual realitygenerally is used to refer to computer generated representations ofvarious real-world or fictitious environments. Virtual reality can beused to generate immersive synthetic environments that users caninteract with and/or navigate through as if in a real world environment,though the virtual reality environment can be fictional. Someembodiments of virtual reality make use of immersive audio and/or visualtechnologies to provide realistic experiences in the virtualenvironments.

Augmented reality can be used to refer to various types of computerassisted representations of the real world. In particular, augmentedreality displays sometimes use a photograph or video of a real worldenvironment such as, for example, a photograph or video of anenvironment around a smartphone as captured by a camera or other imagingdevice associated with the smartphone. These images can be supplementedwith computer generated information such as tags, flags, or the like,which can be used to denote places of interest or other informationwithin the images. The supplemented information can be provided, in someembodiments, as an image overlay that provides information about objectsviewable in the image.

Because augmented reality displays are sometimes based upon aphotograph, image, or video taken using a device camera, the augmentedreality displays generally only provide information about objects in afield of vision of the camera or other imaging device used to capturethe photograph, image, or video. To obtain information about objectsoutside of the camera field of vision, a user turns his or her body (orat least the device housing the camera) toward the objects, therebyprompting download and display of augmented reality elements associatedwith the objects.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure is directed to explorable augmented realitydisplays. The explorable augmented reality displays can be used toprovide augmented reality elements relevant to objects within a field ofvision of a camera or other image capture device, as well as objectsoutside of a field of vision of the camera of other image capturedevice. In particular, the explorable augmented reality displays canprovide an augmented reality display that enables a user or other entityto explore an area around the user by panning the display to access athree hundred sixty degree view of the surroundings from an augmentedreality perspective. As such, while the actual image or video associatedwith the three hundred sixty degree view may be unavailable (sincecameras may be limited to about forty five to sixty degrees of view),augmented reality objects for the full three hundred sixty degrees canbe provided and explored, thereby allowing users to see objects in theenvironment without turning their bodies and/or devices in all threehundred sixty degrees.

As used herein, “explorable” is used to refer to user interfaces thatprovide a navigable environment for providing information to users. Inthe context of an augmented reality display, for example, explorable canrefer to rendering augmented reality objects outside of a field of viewand allowing users to view those objects without turning their bodies ortheir devices toward directions in which real world objects associatedwith the augmented reality objects are located. Furthermore, theaugmented reality objects outside of the field of view can be downloadedwith the objects within the field of view, thereby allowing seamlessviewing of the objects without having to request and download theobjects from a server or service.

According to various embodiments of the concepts and technologiesdescribed herein, an augmented reality service can be executed by aserver computer or other computing device. The augmented reality servicecan be configured to receive a request for augmented reality data from auser or user device. The request can include, or can prompt collectionof, location data and orientation data associated with a device used togenerate the augmented reality views and/or the request for augmentedreality data. The location data can identify a geographic location ofthe device and can be obtained directly from the device or from one ormore location devices in communication with the server computer. Theorientation data can identify a facing direction (a direction in whichthe camera is pointing) associated with the device, a compass bearingassociated with the device, a path or vector representing movement or abearing of the device, combinations thereof, or the like.

The augmented reality service can determine, based upon the locationdata and the orientation data, objects or points of interest in a fieldof view or vision of the device associated with the request, as well asobjects or points of interest outside of the field of view or vision.The augmented reality service can query or otherwise perform lookupoperations on augmented reality data and identify the relevant augmentedreality data. The relevant augmented reality data can be packaged andprovided to the device associated with the request as augmented realitydisplay data.

The device associated with the request can execute an augmented realitydisplay application that can obtain the augmented reality display datafrom the augmented reality service, and generate user interface (“UI”)elements based upon the augmented reality display data. The user devicealso can generate and present an explorable augmented reality displaythat can provide augmented reality elements around a user or userdevice. Thus, a user can access augmented reality data associated with alocation or environment without turning his or her body in all threehundred sixty degrees within the environment. Concepts and technologiesdescribed herein also support position and/or location correction. Theposition and/or location correction can be used to enable augmentedreality displays and/or explorable augmented reality displays inenvironments in which exact location information may be difficult toobtain.

According to one aspect of the concepts and technologies describedherein, a method is disclosed. The method can include receiving, at aprocessor executing an augmented reality service, a request foraugmented reality display data, the request being associated with adevice. The method also can include determining, at the processor, alocation associated with the device, identifying, at the processor,augmented reality data associated with the location, and providing, bythe processor, augmented reality display data to the device. Theaugmented reality display data can include the augmented reality data.

In some embodiments, determining the location associated with the devicecan include receiving, with the request for the augmented realitydisplay data, location data and orientation data associated with thedevice. The location data and the orientation data can be captured bythe device. In some embodiments, determining the location associatedwith the device can include accessing a location device to obtainlocation data associated with the device. Determining the locationassociated with the device can include determining a geographic locationassociated with the device and an orientation associated with thedevice. The orientation associated with the device can include a facingdirection.

In some embodiments, the method also can include determining, at theprocessor, if the location is to be updated, and in response to adetermination that the location is to be updated, obtaining, by theprocessor, a location update from the device. The location update can beprovided by the device by presenting a location correction display andreceiving an update to the location via the location correction display.

In some embodiments, the augmented reality display data can includeaugmented reality objects corresponding to objects in proximity to thedevice. The augmented reality display data can include data that, whenpresented by the device in an explorable augmented reality display,enables exploration of augmented reality objects outside of a field ofview of the device. The augmented reality display data can be providedto the device for presentation in an explorable augmented realitydisplay. In some embodiments, the device can include a smartphone. Thesmartphone can execute an augmented reality display application thatgenerates the request and the explorable augmented reality display.

According to another aspect of the concepts and technologies describedherein, a system is disclosed. The system can include a processor and amemory. The memory can store computer-executable instructions that, whenexecuted by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations.The operations can include receiving a request for augmented realitydisplay data, the request being associated with a device, determining alocation associated with the device, identifying augmented reality dataassociated with the location, and providing augmented reality displaydata to the device. The augmented reality display data can include theaugmented reality data.

In some embodiments, determining the location can include determining ageographic location at which the device is located, and determining anorientation of the device. The orientation can include a facingdirection. In some embodiments, determining the location associated withthe device can include receiving, with the request for the augmentedreality display data, location data and orientation data associated withthe device. In some embodiments, the system can includecomputer-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor,cause the processor to perform operations further including determiningif the location is to be updated, and in response to a determinationthat the location is to be updated, obtaining a location update from thedevice. The augmented reality display data can be provided to the devicefor presentation in an explorable augmented reality display.

According to another aspect of the concepts and technologies describedherein, a computer storage medium is disclosed. The computer storagemedium can have computer-executable instructions stored thereon that,when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations.The operations can include receiving a request for augmented realitydisplay data, the request being associated with a device, determining alocation associated with the device, identifying augmented reality dataassociated with the location, and providing augmented reality displaydata to the device. The augmented reality display data can include theaugmented reality data.

In some embodiments, determining the location can include determining ageographic location at which the device is located, and determining anorientation of the device. The orientation can include a facingdirection. In some embodiments, determining the location associated withthe device can include obtaining location data and orientation dataassociated with the device. The computer storage medium also can includecomputer-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor,cause the processor to perform operations further including determiningif the location is to be updated, and in response to a determinationthat the location is to be updated, obtaining a location update from thedevice. The augmented reality display data can be provided to the devicefor presentation in an explorable augmented reality display.

Other systems, methods, and/or computer program products according toembodiments will be or become apparent to one with skill in the art uponreview of the following drawings and detailed description. It isintended that all such additional systems, methods, and/or computerprogram products be included within this description, be within thescope of this disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a system diagram illustrating an illustrative operatingenvironment for the various embodiments disclosed herein.

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram showing aspects of a method for providingaugmented reality data to a device, according to an illustrativeembodiment.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram showing aspects of a method for requesting andpresenting an explorable augmented reality display at a device,according to another illustrative embodiment.

FIGS. 4A-4H are user interface (“UI”) diagrams showing aspects of UIsfor providing explorable augmented reality displays, according tovarious illustrative embodiments.

FIG. 5 schematically illustrates a network, according to an illustrativeembodiment.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating an example computer systemconfigured to generate and provide data for explorable augmented realitydisplays, according to some illustrative embodiments.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating an example mobile deviceconfigured to interact with an augmented reality service, according tosome illustrative embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description is directed to explorable augmentedreality displays The explorable augmented reality displays can be usedto provide augmented reality elements relevant to objects within a fieldof vision of a camera or other image capture device, as well as objectsoutside of a field of vision of the camera of other image capturedevice. Thus, the concepts and technologies described herein can be usedto provide a user with access to augmented reality information in anenvironment without requiring the user or device to turn in eachdirection of the environment. Thus, augmented reality objects for threehundred sixty degrees around a device can be provided and explored.

According to various embodiments of the concepts and technologiesdescribed herein, an augmented reality service can be executed by aserver computer or other computing device. The augmented reality servicecan be configured to receive a request for augmented reality data from auser or user device. The augmented reality service can determine alocation associated with the request. In some embodiments, location dataand/or orientation data can be included with the request, while in someother embodiments, the augmented reality service can collect thelocation data and/or orientation data from other devices, systems, ornodes. The location data can identify a geographic location of thedevice, and the orientation data can identify a facing direction (adirection in which the camera is pointing) associated with the device, acompass bearing associated with the device, a path or vectorrepresenting movement or a bearing of the device, combinations thereof,or the like.

The augmented reality service can determine, based upon the locationdata and the orientation data, objects or points of interest in a fieldof view or vision of the device associated with the request, as well asobjects or points of interest outside of the field of view or vision.The augmented reality service can provide the relevant augmented realitydata to the device associated as augmented reality display data. Thedevice can obtain the augmented reality display data from the augmentedreality service, and generate user interface elements based upon theaugmented reality display data. The device also can generate and presentan explorable augmented reality display that can provide augmentedreality elements around a user or user device. Thus, a user can accessaugmented reality data associated with a location or environment withoutturning his or her body or the device in all three hundred sixty degreeswithin the environment. Concepts and technologies described herein alsosupport position and/or location correction. The position and/orlocation correction can be used to enable augmented reality displaysand/or explorable augmented reality displays in environments in whichexact location information may be difficult to obtain.

While the subject matter described herein is presented in the generalcontext of program modules that execute in conjunction with theexecution of an operating system and application programs on a computersystem, those skilled in the art will recognize that otherimplementations may be performed in combination with other types ofprogram modules. Generally, program modules include routines, programs,components, data structures, and other types of structures that performparticular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. Moreover,those skilled in the art will appreciate that the subject matterdescribed herein may be practiced with other computer systemconfigurations, including hand-held devices, multiprocessor systems,microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics,minicomputers, mainframe computers, and the like.

Referring now to FIG. 1, aspects of an operating environment 100 forvarious embodiments of the concepts and technologies disclosed hereinfor explorable augmented reality displays will be described, accordingto an illustrative embodiment. The operating environment 100 shown inFIG. 1 includes a user device 102 operating in communication with and/oras part of a communications network (“network”) 104.

According to various embodiments, the functionality of the user device102 may be provided by one or more server computers, desktop computers,mobile telephones, laptop computers, set-top boxes, other computingsystems, and the like. It should be understood that the functionality ofthe user device 102 can be provided by a single device, by two or moresimilar devices, and/or by two or more dissimilar devices. For purposesof describing the concepts and technologies disclosed herein, the userdevice 102 is described herein as a smartphone. It should be understoodthat this embodiment is illustrative, and should not be construed asbeing limiting in any way.

The user device 102 can execute an operating system 106 and one or moreapplication programs such as, for example, an augmented reality displayapplication 108. The operating system 106 is a computer program forcontrolling the operation of the user device 102. The augmented realitydisplay application 108 is an executable program configured to executeon top of the operating system 106 to provide the functionalitydescribed herein for providing explorable virtual reality displays.

In particular, the augmented reality display application 108 can beconfigured to generate and present an explorable augmented realitydisplay 110 and to support various interactions between a user or otherentity and the explorable augmented reality display 110. In someembodiments, the explorable augmented reality display 110 can bepresented to a user or other entity associated with the user device 102,though this is not necessarily the case. In particular, as generally isunderstood, an augmented reality display can include a user interfaceoverlay or other user interface elements that can be used to supplementa view of an environment. For example, if the user device 102 passesinto or through an environment such as the location or environment(“location/environment”) shown in FIG. 1, an augmented reality displaysuch as the explorable augmented reality display 110 can be used tooverlay a captured photograph or video with information about thelocation or environment. Thus, an entity such as a user can view theexplorable augmented reality display 110 to learn information about theenvironment such as, for example, points of interest, sites, historicalinformation, businesses, combinations thereof, or the like.

The augmented reality display application 108 can be configured tocapture video or other imagery at or near the user device 102, and toobtain augmented reality information that can be used to supplement thedisplay of the imagery. In some embodiments, the augmented realitydisplay application 108 can be configured to generate user interface(“UI”) elements and present the UI elements in the explorable augmentedreality displays 110. Furthermore, the augmented reality displayapplication 108 can be configured to support location and/or positioncorrection, which are illustrated and described in more detail below,particularly with reference to FIGS. 4A-4H. These and other functions ofthe augmented reality display application 108 will be further describedbelow.

According to various embodiments, the user device 102 can communicatewith an augmented reality service 112. According to various embodiments,the augmented reality service 112 can include a server application ormodule executed or hosted by a computing device such as a servercomputer 114. According to some embodiments, the augmented realityservice 112 can be a callable service that can be configured to generateaugmented reality display data 116, and to provide the augmented realitydisplay data 116 to the user device 102. In some embodiments, theaugmented reality service 112 can provide the augmented reality displaydata 116 in response to a request or call from the user device such as,for example, an augmented reality display data request 118.

In particular, the augmented reality service 112 can receive anaugmented reality display data request 118 from the user device 102. Theaugmented reality service 112 can determine a location and orientationassociated with the user device 102 in response to receiving theaugmented reality display data request 118, in some embodiments. In someother embodiments, the augmented reality display data request 118 caninclude an indication of the location and orientation of the user device102. Thus, for example, the augmented reality display data request 118can include a geographic location that can be determined by the userdevice 102, for example using a global positioning system (“GPS”)receiver and/or other location determination hardware and/or software.The augmented reality display data request 118 also can indicate anorientation of the user device 102, for example a direction to which theuser device 102 is facing. The direction can be determined, for example,based upon a bearing of the user device 102 and/or various sensors suchas magnetometers, accelerometers, gyroscopes, combinations thereof, orthe like.

In some other embodiments, the augmented reality service 112 can beconfigured to obtain location information associated with the userdevice 102. Thus, for example, the augmented reality service 112 cancommunicate with a location device 120 such as, for example, a locationserver, a location beacon, or other location determination hardwareand/or software to determine the location of the user device 102. Insome embodiments, the location device 120 also can determine or obtain abearing, facing direction, and/or other orientation informationassociated with the user device 102. In some contemplated embodiments,the location device 120 can include a location server of a cellularnetwork, which can determine location using GPS, triangulation, SSIDinformation of WiFi hotspots in a proximity of the user device 102,combinations thereof, or the like.

In some embodiments, the functionality of the location device 120 can besupplemented and/or replaced by various application programminginterfaces (“APIs”). In particular, the augmented reality service 112can access, call, and/or receive information from various locationservices and/or APIs associated with location services and/or software.Contemplated examples include, but are not limited to a location serviceor API provided by a member of the AT&T family of products from AT&TInc., a member of the GOOGLE family of products from Google, Inc, amember of the APPLE family of products from Apple Company, a member ofthe MICROSOFT family of products from Microsoft Corporation, and/orother location services and/or APIs, It should be understood that theseexamples are illustrative and therefore should not be construed as beinglimiting in any way.

According to various embodiments, the augmented reality service 112 cananalyze the augmented reality display data request 118 and a locationand orientation associated with the user device 102 to identify data tobe provided to the user device 102 for presentation in an explorableaugmented reality display 110. In various embodiments, the augmentedreality service 112 can access augmented reality data 122 and identifyrelevant portions of the augmented reality data 122 based upon theaugmented reality display data request 118 and/or the location andorientation determined for the user device 102.

In various embodiments, the augmented reality data 122 can be stored ina data storage device such as a data store 124, or the like. Accordingto various embodiments, the augmented reality data 122 can be storedwith data or other information that associates the augmented realitydata 122 with various locations. The augmented reality data 122 can bestored in a table, database, or other data structure that can supportquerying and/or other lookup operations. As such, the augmented realitydata 122 can be searched according to various aspects of the augmentedreality data 122, and the augmented reality service 112 can identifyrelevant augmented reality data 122 based upon various aspects of theaugmented reality data 122 including, but not limited to, location,user, permissions, preferences, facing direction, or the like. Theaugmented reality service 112 can be configured to control storage ofthe augmented reality data 122, in some embodiments, though this is notnecessarily the case.

The augmented reality service 112 can therefore be configured to receivethe augmented reality display data request 118, determine a location andorientation associated with the requestor (and/or included in theaugmented reality display data request 118), and access the augmentedreality data 122 to identify augmented reality data 122 relevant to therequestor. The augmented reality service 112 can package the relevantdata and transmit the relevant data to the user device 102 (or otherrequestor) as the augmented reality display data 116. In someembodiments, the orientation of the requestor is not obtained, andinstead the user device 102 can determine what data to show first in theexplorable augmented reality display 110 based upon the orientation.

Upon receiving the augmented reality display data 116, the user device102 can, via execution of the augmented reality display application 108and/or other application programs, generate the explorable augmentedreality display 110. As will be explained in more detail below, theexplorable augmented reality display 110 can include an augmentedreality display that shows tags or other UI elements for indicatingpoints of interest, businesses, sites, or the like. The explorableaugmented reality display 110 also can include tags or other UI elementsthat are outside a current view of the augmented reality display. Thus,for example, a user facing north can, via manipulation of the explorableaugmented reality display 110, view tags or other UI elements associatedwith points of interest located to the south of the user. These aspectsof the concepts and technologies described herein will be easierunderstood with reference to FIGS. 4A-4H below.

Various embodiments of the concepts and technologies described hereincan be used to allow users to view points of interest and/or otherinformation relevant to an environment using augmented reality withoutbeing required to turn their bodies (and/or facing direction of devices)to capture video or photographs in all directions. Thus, embodiments ofthe concepts and technologies described herein can improve a userexperience when using augmented reality in various environments and/orin low light conditions by obviating the need to turn around to seepoints of interest in the explorable augmented reality display 110.These and other aspects of the concepts and technologies describedherein will be easier understood with reference to FIGS. 4A-4H below.

FIG. 1 illustrates one user device 102, one network 104, one servercomputer 114, and one location device 120. It should be understood,however, that various implementations of the operating environment 100include zero, one, or more than one user device 102, zero, one, or morethan one network 104, zero, one, or more than one server computer 114and/or zero, one, or more than one location device 120. As such, theillustrated embodiment should be understood as being illustrative, andshould not be construed as being limiting in any way.

Turning now to FIG. 2, aspects of a method 200 for providing augmentedreality data to a device will be described in detail, according to anillustrative embodiment. It should be understood that the operations ofthe methods disclosed herein are not necessarily presented in anyparticular order and that performance of some or all of the operationsin an alternative order(s) is possible and is contemplated. Theoperations have been presented in the demonstrated order for ease ofdescription and illustration. Operations may be added, omitted, and/orperformed simultaneously, without departing from the scope of theconcepts and technologies disclosed herein.

It also should be understood that the methods disclosed herein can beended at any time and need not be performed in its entirety. Some or alloperations of the methods, and/or substantially equivalent operations,can be performed by execution of computer-readable instructions includedon a computer storage media, as defined herein. The term“computer-readable instructions,” and variants thereof, as used herein,is used expansively to include routines, applications, applicationmodules, program modules, programs, components, data structures,algorithms, and the like. Computer-readable instructions can beimplemented on various system configurations including single-processoror multiprocessor systems, minicomputers, mainframe computers, personalcomputers, hand-held computing devices, microprocessor-based,programmable consumer electronics, combinations thereof, and the like.

Thus, it should be appreciated that the logical operations describedherein are implemented (1) as a sequence of computer implemented acts orprogram modules running on a computing system and/or (2) asinterconnected machine logic circuits or circuit modules within thecomputing system. The implementation is a matter of choice dependent onthe performance and other requirements of the computing system.Accordingly, the logical operations described herein are referred tovariously as states, operations, structural devices, acts, or modules.These states, operations, structural devices, acts, and modules may beimplemented in software, in firmware, in special purpose digital logic,and any combination thereof. As used herein, the phrase “cause aprocessor to perform operations” and variants thereof is used to referto causing a processor of a computing system or device, such as, theuser device 102 or the server computer 114 to perform one or moreoperations and/or causing the processor to direct other components ofthe computing system or device to perform one or more of the operations.

For purposes of illustrating and describing the concepts of the presentdisclosure, the method 200 is described as being performed by the servercomputer 114 via execution of one or more software modules such as, forexample, the augmented reality service 112. It should be understood thatadditional and/or alternative devices and/or network nodes can providethe functionality described herein via execution of one or more modules,applications, and/or other software including, but not limited to, theaugmented reality service 112. Thus, the illustrated embodiments areillustrative, and should not be viewed as being limiting in any way.

The method 200 begins at operation 202. At operation 202, the servercomputer 114 receives a request for augmented reality display data 116.In some embodiments, the request received in operation 202 can includean augmented reality display data request 118. The augmented realitydisplay data request 118 can be triggered, for example, by activation,at the user device 102, of an option to present an augmented realitydisplay. In some embodiments, the request is generated by starting anapplication, by accessing a camera application, by selecting an explicitoption to present an augmented reality display, combinations thereof, orthe like. In various embodiments of the concepts and technologiesdescribed herein, the augmented reality display data request 118 can begenerated by the user device 102 in response to detecting execution ofan application to present an explorable augmented reality display 110.It should be understood that this example is illustrative and thereforeshould not be construed as being limiting in any way.

From operation 202, the method 200 proceeds to operation 204. Atoperation 204, the server computer 114 determines a location associatedwith the request received in operation 202. In some embodiments, asexplained above, the server computer 114 can, upon receiving the requestin operation 202, access one or more location devices 120 to determine alocation associated with the user device 102. In addition to providinglocation, the location devices 120 also can provide orientationinformation relating to the user device 102. The orientation informationcan reflect, for example, a compass bearing of the user device 102; adirection, path, or vector of movement of the user device 102; a facingdirection associated with the user device 102; combinations thereof; orthe like. Some or all of these orientation data can be obtained from theuser device 102 by the location device 120 and/or the server computer114. In some embodiments, as noted above, the orientation data may notbe obtained by the server computer 114, and instead can be obtained atthe device and used to customize an initial display of the explorableaugmented reality display 110. It should be understood that this exampleis illustrative and therefore should not be construed as being limitingin any way.

In some other embodiments, the location data and/or the orientation datacan be included in the request received in operation 202. As usedherein, “location data” can refer to data that identifies a geographiclocation. The location data can include, for example, GPS coordinates orother data that identifies a location. As used herein, “orientationdata” can include, for example, a compass bearing, direction or path ofmovement, a movement vector, a facing direction, combinations thereof,or the like. It should be understood that this example is illustrativeand therefore should not be construed as being limiting in any way.

From operation 204, the method 200 proceeds to operation 206. Atoperation 206, the server computer 114 can determine if the locationdetermined in operation 204 is to be updated. In some embodiments, theconcepts and technologies described herein can be used to provideexplorable augmented reality displays inside buildings and/or elsewherewhere an accurate geographic location may not be available. For example,if the concepts and technologies described herein are used to generatethe explorable augmented reality display 110 within a museum or otherindoor space, GPS coordinates may be unavailable due to GPS “shadow.”Thus, the concepts and technologies described herein support presentinga user interface for allowing a user to update a location. The servercomputer 114 also can determine that location is to be updated foradditional or alternative reasons, and as such, the above examples areillustrative and should not be construed as being limiting in any way.

According to various embodiments, the user can update the location usinga display generated by the augmented reality display application 108. Assuch, the display used to update or correct location can be based uponthe location of various tags or other augmented reality display UIelements. Thus, for example, if a user facing north knows that a firstitem “ItemA” is located to his or her north, and that a second item“ItemB” is located to his or her south, the user can indicate his or herpresent location relevant to ItemA and ItemB via manipulatingrepresentations on a display. One contemplated embodiment of the UI forupdating a location is illustrated and described below with reference toFIGS. 4G-4H. Because the location can be updated in additional and/oralternative ways, it should be understood that this example isillustrative and therefore should not be construed as being limiting inany way.

If the server computer 114 determines at operation 206 that the locationis to be updated, the method 200 proceeds to operation 208. At operation208, the server computer 114 can obtain a location update. In someembodiments, as described above, the server computer 114 can instructthe user device 102 to obtain a location update, for example via a UI asillustrated and described herein. In other embodiments, the servercomputer 114 can contact one or more location devices 120 such aslocation beacons within an environment or location to determine anupdated location associated with the user device 102. Because thelocation can be updated in additional and/or alternative ways, it shouldbe understood that these examples are illustrative and therefore shouldnot be construed as being limiting in any way.

If the server computer 114 determines at operation 206 that the locationis not to be updated, the method 200 proceeds to operation 210. Themethod 200 also can proceed to operation 210 from operation 208. Atoperation 210, the server computer 114 can identify augmented realitydata 122 associated with the location determined in operations 204and/or 208. As explained above, the server computer 114 can access theaugmented reality data 122 via lookup operations and/or other databaseor table operations to identify relevant and/or associated augmentedreality data 122. The augmented reality data 122 can be determined to beassociated with the location based upon various data associations and/oranalyses by the augmented reality service 112, as generally isunderstood and therefore will not be further described herein.

From operation 210, the method 200 proceeds to operation 212. Atoperation 212, the server computer 114 provides augmented realitydisplay data 116 to the requestor associated with the request receivedin operation 202. In the context of FIG. 1, operation 212 can correspondto the server computer 114 providing the augmented reality display data116 to the user device 102, though this is not necessarily the case.Although not separately illustrated in FIG. 2, it should be understoodthat operation 212 can include the server computer 114 packaging theaugmented reality data 122 identified in operation 210 and providing thedata 122 to the user device 102 or other requestor. As such, theaugmented reality display data 116 can be provided to the user device102 as a single download, thereby obviating the need to downloadaugmented reality display data 116 when the device 102 is turned orotherwise manipulated to face an area outside of a previous field ofvision. It should be understood that this example is illustrative andtherefore should not be construed as being limiting in any way.

From operation 212, the method 200 proceeds to operation 214. The method200 ends at operation 214.

Turning now to FIG. 3, aspects of a method 300 for requesting andpresenting an explorable augmented reality display at a device will bedescribed in detail, according to an illustrative embodiment. Forpurposes of illustrating and describing the concepts of the presentdisclosure, the method 300 is described as being performed by the userdevice 102 via execution of one or more software modules such as, forexample, the augmented reality display application 108. It should beunderstood that additional and/or alternative devices and/or networknodes can provide the functionality described herein via execution ofone or more modules, applications, and/or other software including, butnot limited to, the augmented reality display application 108. Thus, theillustrated embodiments are illustrative, and should not be viewed asbeing limiting in any way.

The method 300 begins at operation 302. At operation 302, the userdevice 102 determines a location. The user device 102 also can determineits orientation, in some embodiments, though this is not necessarily thecase. According to various embodiments, the user device 102 canperiodically determine its location and/or orientation. In some otherembodiments, the user device 102 can determine its location and/ororientation based upon a request to display an augmented reality displayor an explorable augmented reality display 110. In the embodiment shownin FIG. 3, the user device 102 can be configured to determine itslocation and/or orientation based upon a request for an explorableaugmented reality display 110. The request can be an explicit request oran implicit request.

In particular, the request can correspond to an explicit request such asa selection of a UI element to present an explorable augmented realitydisplay 110. In some other embodiments, the request can correspond to animplicit request such as, for example, activation of the augmentedreality display application 108. Thus, in operation 302, the user device102 can detect a user request for an explorable augmented realitydisplay 110, and as a result, can determine a location and/ororientation. Because the location and/or orientation can be determinedin response to other triggers or events, it should be understood thatthese examples are illustrative and therefore should not be construed asbeing limiting in any way.

From operation 302, the method 300 proceeds to operation 304. Atoperation 304, the user device 102 generates an augmented realitydisplay data request 118. The augmented reality display data request 118can include data identifying the location and/or orientation determinedin operation 302, and can request augmented reality display data 116.The user device 102 can transmit the augmented reality display datarequest 118 to the server computer 114 or another device, system, ornode. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the user device 102 transmitsthe augmented reality display data request 118 to the augmented realityservice 112 executed by the server computer 114. It should be understoodthat this example is illustrative and therefore should not be construedas being limiting in any way.

The augmented reality display data request 118 can request data relevantand/or associated with the location and/or orientation determined inoperation 302. The augmented reality display data request 118 thereforecan be used to obtain augmented reality display data 116 that can bepresented by the user device 102 in the explorable augmented realitydisplay 110.

From operation 304, the method 300 proceeds to operation 306. Atoperation 306, the user device 102 obtains augmented reality displaydata 116. According to various embodiments of the concepts andtechnologies described herein, the user device 102 can receive theaugmented reality display data 116 as a response to the augmentedreality display data request 118, though this is not necessarily thecase. In some other embodiments, the user device 102 can be configuredto obtain the augmented reality display data 116 by accessing a serveror other device that can serve the relevant data. Because the augmentedreality display data 116 can be obtained in additional and/oralternative ways, it should be understood that these examples areillustrative and therefore should not be construed as being limiting inany way.

From operation 306, the method 300 proceeds to operation 308. Atoperation 308, the user device 102 generates UI elements. The UIelements generated in operation 308 can correspond to various UIelements of the explorable augmented reality display 110. The userdevice 102 can generate the UI elements based upon the augmented realitydisplay data 116 received in operation 306.

The UI elements generated in operation 308 can include, for example,tags, flags, text, photographs, icons, and/or other UI elements forpresentation within or as the explorable augmented reality display 110.In addition to generating UI elements such as overlay elements withtags, flags, or the like for a visible field of view within theexplorable augmented reality display 110, the user device 102 also cangenerate UI elements that are outside of the visible field of viewwithin the explorable augmented reality display 110.

In particular, for example, if the user device 102 is facing north andis presenting within the explorable augmented reality display 110 afield of view of about sixty degrees, any points of interest or otherobjects located to the south of the user device 102 would generally notbe visible in the current view of the explorable augmented realitydisplay 110. According to various embodiments of the concepts andtechnologies described herein, however, the user device 102 can generateUI elements associated with the points of interest and/or other objectslocated around the user device 102, thereby enabling exploration withinthe explorable augmented reality display 110. Thus, some embodiments ofthe concepts and technologies described herein include rendering UIelements around three hundred sixty degrees around the user device 102,though this is not necessarily the case.

In particular, various embodiments of the concepts and technologiesdescribed herein allow a user facing north to input a command to viewobjects located to his or her south or other direction outside of acurrent visible field of view without turning his or her body or deviceto face that direction. For example, a user can select a UI control toexplore in one or more directions, enter a swipe command on a touchscreen, and/or enter other types of input to view UI elements associatedwith portions of the location or environment outside of the visiblefield of view of the explorable augmented reality display 110. Thus, forexample, a user facing north can swipe to the right in the explorableaugmented reality display 110 to view UI elements associated with pointsof interest or other objects located to the east, south, west, north,and/or points between. Thus, a user may not need to turn his or her bodyor device to these directions to determine points of interest or otherobjects in those directions. It should be understood that this exampleis illustrative and therefore should not be construed as being limitingin any way.

From operation 308, the method 300 proceeds to operation 310. Atoperation 310, the user device 102 can provide the explorable augmentedreality display 110. Thus, the user device 102 can present theexplorable augmented reality display 110 on a display device orotherwise output the explorable augmented reality display 110. Operation310 also can include various manipulations within the explorableaugmented reality display 110 by the user and display of UI elements bythe user device 102 in response to these manipulations. It should beunderstood that this example is illustrative and therefore should not beconstrued as being limiting in any way.

From operation 310, the method 300 proceeds to operation 312. Atoperation 312, the user device 102 can determine if the locationdetermined in operation 302 is to be updated. In some embodiments,operation 312 can correspond to a user selection of a UI control forupdating location. In some other embodiments, operation 312 cancorrespond to the user device 102 determining, based upon data receivedfrom the server computer 114 and/or based upon other information, thatthe location is to be updated. In some embodiments, the user selects anoption to update location, and in response thereto, the user device 102can present a UI to update location. One example embodiment of the UIfor updating location is illustrated and described below with referenceto FIGS. 4G-4H. It should be understood that this example isillustrative and therefore should not be construed as being limiting inany way.

If the user device 102 determines, in operation 312, that the locationis to be updated, the method 300 can proceed to operation 314. Inoperation 314, the user device can obtain updated location information.As noted above, operation 314 can correspond to presentation of a UI forupdating location and/or receiving data via that UI and receipt, via theUI, of updated location information. From operation 314, the method 300can proceed to operation 306, and the user device 102 can obtainaugmented reality display data 116 associated with the updated location.Although not shown in FIG. 3, it should be understood that the userdevice 102 can be configured to generate a new augmented reality displaydata request 118 after receiving updated location data. Such may be thecase where the location is adjusted such that that the availableaugmented reality display data 116 is insufficient to provide UIelements at the updated location. It should be understood that thisexample is illustrative and therefore should not be construed as beinglimiting in any way.

If the user device 102 determines, in operation 312, that the locationis not to be updated, the method 300 can proceed to operation 316. Themethod 300 ends at operation 316.

FIGS. 4A-4H are user interface (“UI”) diagrams showing aspects of UIsfor generating, presenting, and exploring explorable augmented realitydisplays 110, according to some illustrative embodiments. FIG. 4A showsan illustrative screen display 400A generated by a device such as theuser device 102. According to various embodiments, the user device 102can generate the screen display 400A and/or other screen displays inconjunction with and/or based upon activation of the augmented realitydisplay application 108 described herein. It should be appreciated thatthe UI diagram illustrated in FIG. 4A is illustrative of onecontemplated example of the UIs that can be generated and/or displayedin accordance with the concepts and technologies disclosed herein, andtherefore should not be construed as being limited in any way.

The screen display 400A can include various menus and/or menu options(not shown in FIG. 4A). The screen display 400A also can include cameraview display or window (“camera display 402”). The camera display 402can correspond to a current view of a location or environment as viewedthrough a camera or other capture device associated with the user device102. Thus, the camera display 402 can correspond to a part of a viewablelocation or environment from the perspective of the user device 102and/or a user associated with the user device.

It should be appreciated that the screen display 400A can be presented,for example, in response to receiving activation of the camera or othercapture device at the user device 102, activation of the augmentedreality display application 108, or the like. Because the screen display400A illustrated in FIG. 4A can be displayed at additional and/oralternative times, it should be understood that this example isillustrative and therefore should not be construed as being limiting inany way.

The camera display 402 can include a UI control 404. Selection of the UIcontrol 404 can cause the user device 102 to obtain augmented realitydisplay data 116 and/or to present the augmented reality display data116 in an explorable augmented reality display 110. Because the cameradisplay 402 can include additional or alternative UI controls, it shouldbe understood that this example is illustrative and therefore should notbe construed as being limiting in any way.

It can be appreciated from the above description of FIGS. 1-3 thatselection of the UI control 404 can cause the user device 102 togenerate an augmented reality display data request 118 and/or to obtainthe augmented reality display data 116. Selection of the UI control 404also can cause the device to obtain or determine its location and/or tocapture orientation data as explained above. Because additional and/oralternative actions can be taken in response to selection of the UIcontrol 404, it should be understood that these embodiments areillustrative, and should not be construed as being limiting in any way.

The screen display 400A shown in FIG. 4A also includes a viewingdirection and viewing scope indicator (“viewing direction indicator”)405. The viewing direction indicator 405 can display information thatindicates a pointing direction. The pointing direction can inform a useror other entity as to a direction in which the user is facing and/or ascope of view included in the displayed view. As shown in FIG. 4A, theviewing direction indicator 405 can include a viewing scope anddirection cone (“view cone”) 407. The view cone 407 can schematicallyillustrate a scope or amount, for example in degrees, of a three hundredsixty degree radius about the user or other entity that is visible inthe screen display 400A. Thus, a user or other entity can, via referenceto the viewing direction indicator 405 and the view cone 407, determinea direction in which the user or other entity is facing (west in theillustrated embodiment), and a relative scope of view that is visible tothe user or other entity (approximately fifteen degrees in theillustrated embodiment).

In some other embodiments, a compass readout and/or display can beincluded in the screen display 400A. Thus, for example, hash markscorresponding to degrees of a compass and/or directions of a compass canbe displayed on the screen display 400A in addition to, or instead of,the viewing direction indicator 405 and/or the view cone 407. Because auser's pointing direction and/or a scope of view can be illustrated invarious other ways, it should be understood that the illustrated exampleis illustrative and therefore should not be construed as being limitingin any way. Additional iterations of the viewing direction indicator 405and/or the viewing cone 407 are illustrated and described below andtherefore will be further understood with reference to FIGS. 4B-4H.

Referring now to FIG. 4B, a UI diagram showing additional aspects of theconcepts and technologies disclosed herein for providing explorableaugmented reality displays 110 using an augmented reality service 112are described in detail. In particular, FIG. 4B shows an illustrativescreen display 400B generated by a device such as the user device 102.It should be appreciated that the UI diagram illustrated in FIG. 4B isillustrative of one contemplated example of the UIs that can begenerated and/or displayed in accordance with the concepts andtechnologies disclosed herein, and therefore should not be construed asbeing limited in any way.

The screen display 400B can include an explorable augmented realitydisplay 406. The explorable augmented reality display 406 can be used topresent one or more explorable augmented reality displays 110 to a useror other entity. It can be appreciated that the explorable augmentedreality display 406 can be presented in response to a user selecting theUI control 404 shown in FIG. 4A. Because the explorable augmentedreality display 406 can be displayed at additional and/or alternativetimes, it should be understood that this embodiment is illustrative, andshould not be construed as being limiting in any way.

The explorable augmented reality display 406 can include a view of thelocation or environment as seen through the camera or other imagingdevice associated with the user device 102, as explained above withreference to FIG. 4A. The explorable augmented reality display 406 alsocan include flags, tags, or other UI elements (“tags”) 408. The tags 408can provide information about items or objects within a current field ofview of the camera or other imaging device. It should be understood thatthe camera or other imaging device can capture photographs or video,depending upon preferences, settings, and/or needs. The tags 408 canprovide information about items within a view. In some embodiments, thetags 408 can include labels for the items or objects, as well asdistance and/or direction information, if desired. In various otherembodiments, the tags 408 can include data indicating if the item orobject is free to see or access, business hours associated with abusiness or institution, other information, or the like.

The explorable augmented reality display 406 also can include a UIcontrol 410 for exploring within the explorable augmented realitydisplay 406. Thus, selection of the UI control 410 can cause the userdevice 102 to present augmented reality UI elements outside of thecurrent field of view, as explained above in detail. According tovarious embodiments, the UI control 410 can include a scroll bar,cursors or arrows that can be tapped or otherwise manipulated, and/or aregion of the display within which swipes or other gestures can berecognized as commands to explore the explorable augmented realitydisplay 406. It should be understood that this example is illustrativeand therefore should not be construed as being limiting in any way.

Referring now to FIG. 4C, a UI diagram showing additional aspects of theconcepts and technologies disclosed herein for providing explorableaugmented reality displays 110 using an augmented reality service 112are described in detail. In particular, FIG. 4C shows an illustrativescreen display 400C generated by a device such as the user device 102.It should be appreciated that the UI diagram illustrated in FIG. 4C isillustrative of one contemplated example of the UIs that can begenerated and/or displayed in accordance with the concepts andtechnologies disclosed herein, and therefore should not be construed asbeing limited in any way.

The screen display 400C can include a manipulated view 412 of theexplorable augmented reality display 406 shown in FIG. 4B. Themanipulated view 412 can be presented in response to a user manipulatingthe UI control 410 shown in FIG. 4B. In particular, as shown in FIG. 4C,the user can enter a swipe gesture along the UI control 410 to presentthe manipulated view 412. Because the manipulated view 412 can bedisplayed at additional and/or alternative times, it should beunderstood that this embodiment is illustrative, and should not beconstrued as being limiting in any way.

The manipulated view 412 can include a partial view of the environmentor location as seen through the camera or other imaging deviceassociated with the user device 102, as explained above with referenceto FIGS. 4A-4B. As shown in FIG. 4C, an active view can effectively bepanned off the visible portion of the screen and instead a void 414 canbe displayed on the screen display 400C. The void 414 can correspond toa portion of the explorable augmented reality display 110 that isoutside of the field of view of the camera or other capture device.Thus, the void 414 can be blank or empty as shown in FIG. 4C, other thantags 408 or other UI elements associated with the location correspondingto the void 414.

As can be seen in FIG. 4C, a new tag 416 can be displayed on themanipulated view 412. The new tag 416 can point off the visible screenand therefore can indicate, to a user or other entity manipulating theexplorable augmented reality display 406, that a point of interest islocated in the direction indicated in the new tag 416.

The new tag 416 can provide information about items or objects outsideof the current field of view of the camera or other imaging device. Itshould be understood that the camera or other imaging device can capturephotographs or video, depending upon preferences, settings, and/orneeds. In some embodiments, the new tag 416 also can include a label,distance information, direction information, and/or other information.It should be understood that this example is illustrative and thereforeshould not be construed as being limiting in any way.

In FIG. 4C, it can be appreciated that the viewing direction indicator405 can be updated as the user or other entity manipulates the screendisplay 400C. As shown in FIG. 4C, the viewing direction indicator 405also can include a current view scope and direction indicator (“currentview cone”) 417 in addition to, or instead of, the viewing directionindicator 405. The current view cone 417 can indicate a direction and/orscope of the environment that corresponds to the view depicted withinthe screen display 400C. Thus, a user or other entity can, via referenceto the viewing direction indicator 405, the view cone 407, and thecurrent view cone 417, understand a relative movement between the viewshown in the screen display 400A and a subsequent view such as the viewshown in the screen display 400C. It should be understood that thisexample is illustrative and therefore should not be construed as beinglimiting in any way.

Referring now to FIG. 4D, a UI diagram showing additional aspects of theconcepts and technologies disclosed herein for providing explorableaugmented reality displays 110 using an augmented reality service 112are described in detail. In particular, FIG. 4D shows an illustrativescreen display 400D generated by a device such as the user device 102.It should be appreciated that the UI diagram illustrated in FIG. 4D isillustrative of one contemplated example of the UIs that can begenerated and/or displayed in accordance with the concepts andtechnologies disclosed herein, and therefore should not be construed asbeing limited in any way.

The screen display 400D can include another manipulated view 418 of theexplorable augmented reality display 406 shown in FIG. 4B (andtherefore, can represent further manipulation of the manipulated view412 shown in FIG. 4C). The manipulated view 418 can be presented inresponse to a user further manipulating the UI control 410 shown in FIG.4C. Because the manipulated view 418 can be displayed at additionaland/or alternative times, it should be understood that this embodimentis illustrative, and should not be construed as being limiting in anyway.

As can be seen in FIG. 4D, the manipulated view 418 can omit a view ofthe environment or location as seen through the camera or other imagingdevice associated with the user device 102, as these portions of theenvironment/location can be outside of the portion of the virtualenvironment represented by the manipulated view 418. Thus, it can beappreciated that the active view can effectively be panned off thevisible portion of the screen and instead only the void 414 can bedisplayed. Thus, the void 414 can be blank or empty as shown in FIG. 4D,other than the new tags 416, 420 or other UI elements associated withthe location corresponding to the void 414.

As can be seen in FIG. 4D, the new tags 416, 420 can be displayed on themanipulated view 418. The new tags 416, 420 can point off the visiblescreen and therefore can indicate, to a user or other entity, thatpoints of interest associated with the new tags 416, 420 are located inthe direction indicated in the new tags 416, 420. The new tags 416, 420can provide information about items or objects outside of the currentfield of view of the camera or other imaging device. It should beunderstood that this example is illustrative and therefore should not beconstrued as being limiting in any way.

As shown in FIG. 4D, the current view cone 417 has again been updated toshow the current viewing direction and/or scope depicted within thescreen display 400D. Thus, a user or other entity can, via reference tothe viewing direction indicator 405, the view cone 407, and the currentview cone 417, understand a relative movement between the view shown inthe screen display 400A and/or 400C and a subsequent view such as theview shown in the screen display 400D. It should be understood that thisexample is illustrative and therefore should not be construed as beinglimiting in any way.

Referring now to FIG. 4E, a UI diagram showing additional aspects of theconcepts and technologies disclosed herein for providing explorableaugmented reality displays 110 using an augmented reality service 112are described in detail. In particular, FIG. 4E shows an illustrativescreen display 400E generated by a device such as the user device 102.It should be appreciated that the UI diagram illustrated in FIG. 4E isillustrative of one contemplated example of the UIs that can begenerated and/or displayed in accordance with the concepts andtechnologies disclosed herein, and therefore should not be construed asbeing limited in any way.

The screen display 400E can include yet another manipulated view 422 ofthe explorable augmented reality display 406 shown in FIG. 4B (andtherefore, can represent further manipulation of the manipulated view418 shown in FIG. 4D). The manipulated view 422 can be presented inresponse to a user further manipulating the UI control 410 shown inFIGS. 4B-4D. Because the manipulated view 422 can be displayed atadditional and/or alternative times, it should be understood that thisembodiment is illustrative, and should not be construed as beinglimiting in any way.

As can be seen in FIG. 4E, the manipulated view 422 can correspond to apoint at which the new tags 420 are centered within the void 414, thoughthis is not necessarily the case. The new tags 420 can point to pointswithin the void 414, and therefore can indicate, to a user or otherentity, that the points of interest associated with the new tags 420 arelocated in a portion of the environment or location that corresponds tothe void 414. It should be understood that this example is illustrativeand therefore should not be construed as being limiting in any way.

The manipulated view 422 also can include a UI control 424 foractivating a live scan. Selection of the UI control 424 can cause theuser device 102 to activate a camera or other imaging device so that auser can view an augmented display view corresponding to the void 414.Thus, in some embodiments, the user can turn his or her body (and/or theuser device 102) to point in the direction of the location/environmentthat corresponds to the void 414, and then select the UI control 424 toview a captured image of the location/environment in that direction. Anexample is shown in FIG. 4F.

As shown in FIG. 4E, the current view cone 417 has again been updated toshow the current viewing direction and/or scope depicted within thescreen display 400E. Thus, a user or other entity can, via reference tothe viewing direction indicator 405, the view cone 407, and the currentview cone 417, understand a relative movement between the view shown inthe screen display 400A, 400C, and/or 400D and a subsequent view such asthe view shown in the screen display 400E. It should be understood thatthis example is illustrative and therefore should not be construed asbeing limiting in any way.

Turning now to FIG. 4F, a UI diagram showing additional aspects of theconcepts and technologies disclosed herein for providing explorableaugmented reality displays 110 using an augmented reality service 112are described in detail. In particular, FIG. 4F shows an illustrativescreen display 400F generated by a device such as the user device 102.It should be appreciated that the UI diagram illustrated in FIG. 4F isillustrative of one contemplated example of the UIs that can begenerated and/or displayed in accordance with the concepts andtechnologies disclosed herein, and therefore should not be construed asbeing limited in any way.

The screen display 400F can include another explorable augmented realitydisplay 426. The explorable augmented reality display 426 can bepresented in response to a user selecting the UI control 424 shown inFIG. 4E. Because the explorable augmented reality display 426 can bedisplayed at additional and/or alternative times, it should beunderstood that this embodiment is illustrative, and should not beconstrued as being limiting in any way.

As can be seen in FIG. 4F, the explorable augmented reality display 426can provide the new tags 420 shown in FIGS. 4D-4E, but can show thesenew tags 420 as overlays on a video or photo of the real location orenvironment. Although the new tags 420 are shown in their correctrelationship relative to the sculptures shown in FIG. 4F, it is possiblethat UI elements such as tags, flags, or the like can be displayed atlocations that do not match the real world elements to which theyrelate.

In particular, if the augmented reality display application 108 is usedindoors or at other locations at which obtaining exact geolocation isdifficult or impossible, the tags or other UI elements may be displayedat locations that do not match the real world elements. This can be, forexample, because the expected or estimated location of the user device102 may not accurately reflect the real location, and as such, tags thatare estimated to be in front of the user device 102 may in fact bebehind the user device, and/or vice versa. As such, embodiments of theconcepts and technologies described herein support user interfaces andtechnologies for updating or correcting position for the explorableaugmented reality displays 110 and/or for other reasons.

Thus, the screen display 400F also includes a UI control 428 forcorrecting a position or location of the user device 102 relative to thelocation or environment. Upon selection of the UI control 428, the userdevice 102 can be configured to present a UI for adjusting locationand/or position, or can take other actions to update location. It shouldbe understood that this example is illustrative and therefore should notbe construed as being limiting in any way.

As shown in FIG. 4F, the viewing direction indicator 405 and the viewcone 407 have been updated to show the current viewing direction and/orscope depicted within the screen display 400F. Thus, a user or otherentity can, via reference to the viewing direction indicator 405 and theview cone 407 understand a relative movement and/or facing directionchange between the views shown in the screen displays 400A, 400C, 400D,or 400E and a subsequent view and/or pointing direction such as the viewand pointing direction depicted in the screen display 400F. It should beunderstood that this example is illustrative and therefore should not beconstrued as being limiting in any way.

Referring now to FIG. 4G, a UI diagram showing additional aspects of theconcepts and technologies disclosed herein for providing explorableaugmented reality displays 110 using an augmented reality service 112are described in detail. In particular, FIG. 4G shows an illustrativescreen display 400G generated by a device such as the user device 102.It should be appreciated that the UI diagram illustrated in FIG. 4G isillustrative of one contemplated example of the UIs that can begenerated and/or displayed in accordance with the concepts andtechnologies disclosed herein, and therefore should not be construed asbeing limited in any way.

The screen display 400G can include a location correction display 430.The location correction display 430 can be used to correct a location orposition of a user device 102 or user relative to one or more augmentedreality elements such as tags, or the like. It should be appreciatedthat the location correction display 430 can be presented in response toa user selecting the UI control 428 shown in FIG. 4F. Because thelocation correction display 430 can be displayed at additional and/oralternative times, it should be understood that this embodiment isillustrative, and should not be construed as being limiting in any way.

The location correction display 430 can include a view of the locationor environment in which the user or user device 102 is located. In someembodiments, the location correction display 430 includes a plan viewshowing representations of the augmented reality tags or elements in thelocation or environment and an indicator of current location of the userdevice 102 within that location or environment. As such, the user orother entity can see a relationship between the augmented reality tagsor elements and a location of the user or user device 102 and can begiven the opportunity to correct the position and/or location of theuser or user device 102.

As shown in FIG. 4G, the location correction display 430 can includeicons 432. The icons 432 can correspond to relative positions of objectsin the real world (relative to the current estimated or known locationof the user device 102) that are included in the augmented realitydisplay data 116 upon which the explorable augmented reality display 110is based. It should be understood that the icons 432 can be replacedand/or supplemented with flags, tags, or the like, and that theillustrated embodiment is merely illustrative of the concepts andtechnologies described herein. Also, the location correction display 430can include an estimated or known location indicator 434, which cancorrespond to a known or estimated location of the user device 102.Again, it should be understood that this embodiment is illustrative andtherefore should not be construed as being limiting in any way.

In some embodiments, the user can adjust his or her location orposition, relative to the icons 432, by knowing his or her location inthe real world and adjusting the location of the estimated or knownlocation indicator 434 based upon that knowledge. For example, the useror other entity may know that a real world object that corresponds tothe icon 432 labeled “5” is actually located behind the user or otherentity, while in the location correction display 430, the icon 432labeled “5” is shown in front of the user or other entity. Thus, theuser or other entity can adjust the location of the estimated or knownlocation indicator 434 to correct this error, as shown collectively inFIGS. 4G-4H.

In particular, FIG. 4G shows a user or other entity tapping theestimated or known location indicator 434 and dragging the estimated orknown location indicator 434 along a path 436 to a new location 438. InFIG. 4H, the icons 432 are shown in their corrected locations relativeto the corrected location of the estimated or known location indicator434. As shown in FIGS. 4G-4H, the location correction display 430 alsocan include a UI control 440 for accepting a location or positioncorrection. In some embodiments, selection of the UI control 440 canaccept the changes and also can communicate, to the server computer 114,the location correction as illustrated and described above withreference to operations 208 and 314 of FIGS. 2 and 3. It should beunderstood that these examples are illustrative and therefore should notbe construed as being limiting in any way.

It should be understood that the camera or other imaging device cancapture photographs or video, depending upon preferences, settings,and/or needs. The tags 408 can provide information about items withinview. In some embodiments, the tags 408 can include labels for the itemsor objects, as well as distance and/or direction information, ifdesired. In various other embodiments, the tags 408 can include dataindicating if the item or object is free to see or access, businesshours associated with a business or institution, other information, orthe like.

The location correction display 430 also can include a UI control 410for exploring within the location correction display 430. Thus,selection of the UI control 410 can cause the user device 102 to presentUI elements outside of the current field of view, as explained above indetail. According to various embodiments, the UI control 410 can includea scroll bar, cursors or arrows that can be tapped or otherwisemanipulated, and/or a region of the display within which swipes or othergestures can be recognized as commands to explore the locationcorrection display 430. It should be understood that this example isillustrative and therefore should not be construed as being limiting inany way.

Turning now to FIG. 5, additional details of the network 104 areillustrated, according to an illustrative embodiment. The network 104includes a cellular network 502, a packet data network 504, for example,the Internet, and a circuit switched network 506, for example, apublicly switched telephone network (“PSTN”). The cellular network 502includes various components such as, but not limited to, basetransceiver stations (“BTSs”), Node-B's or e-Node-B's, base stationcontrollers (“BSCs”), radio network controllers (“RNCs”), mobileswitching centers (“MSCs”), mobile management entities (“MMEs”), shortmessage service centers (“SMSCs”), multimedia messaging service centers(“MMSCs”), home location registers (“HLRs”), home subscriber servers(“HSSs”), visitor location registers (“VLRs”), charging platforms,billing platforms, voicemail platforms, GPRS core network components,location service nodes, an IP Multimedia Subsystem (“IMS”), and thelike. The cellular network 502 also includes radios and nodes forreceiving and transmitting voice, data, and combinations thereof to andfrom radio transceivers, networks, the packet data network 504, and thecircuit switched network 506.

A mobile communications device 508, such as, for example, a cellulartelephone, a user equipment, a mobile terminal, a PDA, a laptopcomputer, a handheld computer, and combinations thereof, can beoperatively connected to the cellular network 502. The cellular network502 can be configured as a 2G GSM network and can provide datacommunications via GPRS and/or EDGE. Additionally, or alternatively, thecellular network 502 can be configured as a 3G UMTS network and canprovide data communications via the HSPA protocol family, for example,HSDPA, EUL (also referred to as HSUPA), and HSPA+. The cellular network502 also is compatible with 4G mobile communications standards as wellas evolved and future mobile standards.

The packet data network 504 includes various devices, for example,servers, computers, databases, and other devices in communication withanother, as is generally known. The packet data network 504 devices areaccessible via one or more network links. The servers often storevarious files that are provided to a requesting device such as, forexample, a computer, a terminal, a smartphone, or the like. Typically,the requesting device includes software (a “browser”) for executing aweb page in a format readable by the browser or other software. Otherfiles and/or data may be accessible via “links” in the retrieved files,as is generally known. In some embodiments, the packet data network 504includes or is in communication with the Internet. The circuit switchednetwork 506 includes various hardware and software for providing circuitswitched communications. The circuit switched network 506 may include,or may be, what is often referred to as a plain old telephone system(POTS). The functionality of a circuit switched network 506 or othercircuit-switched network are generally known and will not be describedherein in detail.

The illustrated cellular network 502 is shown in communication with thepacket data network 504 and a circuit switched network 506, though itshould be appreciated that this is not necessarily the case. One or moreInternet-capable devices 510, for example, a PC, a laptop, a portabledevice, or another suitable device, can communicate with one or morecellular networks 502, and devices connected thereto, through the packetdata network 504. It also should be appreciated that theInternet-capable device 510 can communicate with the packet data network504 through the circuit switched network 506, the cellular network 502,and/or via other networks (not illustrated).

As illustrated, a communications device 512, for example, a telephone,facsimile machine, modem, computer, or the like, can be in communicationwith the circuit switched network 506, and therethrough to the packetdata network 504 and/or the cellular network 502. It should beappreciated that the communications device 512 can be anInternet-capable device, and can be substantially similar to theInternet-capable device 510. In the specification, the network 104 isused to refer broadly to any combination of the networks 502, 504, 506.It should be appreciated that substantially all of the functionalitydescribed with reference to the network 104 can be performed by thecellular network 502, the packet data network 504, and/or the circuitswitched network 506, alone or in combination with other networks,network elements, and the like.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a computer system 600 configuredto provide the functionality described herein for providing explorableaugmented reality displays, in accordance with various embodiments ofthe concepts and technologies disclosed herein. The computer system 600includes a processing unit 602, a memory 604, one or more user interfacedevices 606, one or more input/output (“I/O”) devices 608, and one ormore network devices 610, each of which is operatively connected to asystem bus 612. The bus 612 enables bi-directional communication betweenthe processing unit 602, the memory 604, the user interface devices 606,the I/O devices 608, and the network devices 610.

The processing unit 602 may be a standard central processor thatperforms arithmetic and logical operations, a more specific purposeprogrammable logic controller (“PLC”), a programmable gate array, orother type of processor known to those skilled in the art and suitablefor controlling the operation of the server computer. As used herein,the word “processor” and/or the phrase “processing unit” when used withregard to any architecture or system can include multiple processors orprocessing units distributed across and/or operating in parallel in asingle machine or in multiple machines. Furthermore, processors and/orprocessing units can be used to support virtual processing environments.Processors and processing units also can include state machines,application-specific integrated circuits (“ASICs”), combinationsthereof, or the like. Because processors and/or processing units aregenerally known, the processors and processing units disclosed hereinwill not be described in further detail herein.

The memory 604 communicates with the processing unit 602 via the systembus 612. In some embodiments, the memory 604 is operatively connected toa memory controller (not shown) that enables communication with theprocessing unit 602 via the system bus 612. The memory 604 includes anoperating system 614 and one or more program modules 616. The operatingsystem 614 can include, but is not limited to, members of the WINDOWS,WINDOWS CE, and/or WINDOWS MOBILE families of operating systems fromMICROSOFT CORPORATION, the LINUX family of operating systems, theSYMBIAN family of operating systems from SYMBIAN LIMITED, the BREWfamily of operating systems from QUALCOMM CORPORATION, the MAC OS, iOS,and/or LEOPARD families of operating systems from APPLE CORPORATION, theFREEBSD family of operating systems, the SOLARIS family of operatingsystems from ORACLE CORPORATION, other operating systems, and the like.

The program modules 616 may include various software and/or programmodules described herein. In some embodiments, for example, the programmodules 616 include the augmented reality service 112 and/or theaugmented reality display application 108 (not shown in FIG. 6). Thisand/or other programs can be embodied in computer-readable mediacontaining instructions that, when executed by the processing unit 602,perform one or more of the methods 200, 300 described in detail abovewith respect to FIGS. 2-3. According to some embodiments, the programmodules 616 may be embodied in hardware, software, firmware, or anycombination thereof. Although not shown in FIG. 6, it should beunderstood that the memory 604 also can be configured to store theexplorable augmented reality display 110, the augmented reality displaydata 116, the augmented reality data 122, and/or other data, if desired.

By way of example, and not limitation, computer-readable media mayinclude any available computer storage media or communication media thatcan be accessed by the computer system 600. Communication media includescomputer-readable instructions, data structures, program modules, orother data in a modulated data signal such as a carrier wave or othertransport mechanism and includes any delivery media. The term “modulateddata signal” means a signal that has one or more of its characteristicschanged or set in a manner as to encode information in the signal. Byway of example, and not limitation, communication media includes wiredmedia such as a wired network or direct-wired connection, and wirelessmedia such as acoustic, RF, infrared and other wireless media.Combinations of the any of the above should also be included within thescope of computer-readable media.

Computer storage media includes volatile and non-volatile, removable andnon-removable media implemented in any method or technology for storageof information such as computer-readable instructions, data structures,program modules, or other data. Computer storage media includes, but isnot limited to, RAM, ROM, Erasable Programmable ROM (“EPROM”),Electrically Erasable Programmable ROM (“EEPROM”), flash memory or othersolid state memory technology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disks (“DVD”),or other optical storage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magneticdisk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other mediumwhich can be used to store the desired information and which can beaccessed by the computer system 600. In the claims, the phrase “computerstorage medium” and variations thereof does not include waves or signalsper se and/or communication media.

The user interface devices 606 may include one or more devices withwhich a user accesses the computer system 600. The user interfacedevices 606 may include, but are not limited to, computers, servers,personal digital assistants, cellular phones, or any suitable computingdevices. The I/O devices 608 enable a user to interface with the programmodules 616. In one embodiment, the I/O devices 608 are operativelyconnected to an I/O controller (not shown) that enables communicationwith the processing unit 602 via the system bus 612. The I/O devices 608may include one or more input devices, such as, but not limited to, akeyboard, a mouse, or an electronic stylus. Further, the I/O devices 608may include one or more output devices, such as, but not limited to, adisplay screen or a printer.

The network devices 610 enable the computer system 600 to communicatewith other networks or remote systems via a network, such as the network104. Examples of the network devices 610 include, but are not limitedto, a modem, a radio frequency (“RF”) or infrared (“IR”) transceiver, atelephonic interface, a bridge, a router, or a network card. The network104 may include a wireless network such as, but not limited to, aWireless Local Area Network (“WLAN”) such as a WI-FI network, a WirelessWide Area Network (“WWAN”), a Wireless Personal Area Network (“WPAN”)such as BLUETOOTH, a Wireless Metropolitan Area Network (“WMAN”) such aWiMAX network, or a cellular network. Alternatively, the network 104 maybe a wired network such as, but not limited to, a Wide Area Network(“WAN”) such as the Internet, a Local Area Network (“LAN”) such as theEthernet, a wired Personal Area Network (“PAN”), or a wired MetropolitanArea Network (“MAN”).

Turning now to FIG. 7, an illustrative mobile device 700 and componentsthereof will be described. In some embodiments, the user device 102described above with reference to FIGS. 1-4H can be configured as and/orcan have an architecture similar or identical to the mobile device 700described herein in FIG. 7. It should be understood, however, that theuser device 102 may or may not include the functionality describedherein with reference to FIG. 7. While connections are not shown betweenthe various components illustrated in FIG. 7, it should be understoodthat some, none, or all of the components illustrated in FIG. 7 can beconfigured to interact with one other to carry out various devicefunctions. In some embodiments, the components are arranged so as tocommunicate via one or more busses (not shown). Thus, it should beunderstood that FIG. 7 and the following description are intended toprovide a general understanding of a suitable environment in whichvarious aspects of embodiments can be implemented, and should not beconstrued as being limiting in any way.

As illustrated in FIG. 7, the mobile device 700 can include a display702 for displaying data. According to various embodiments, the display702 can be configured to display various graphical user interface(“GUI”) elements for explorable augmented reality displays 110, text,images, video, virtual keypads and/or keyboards, messaging data,notification messages, metadata, internet content, device status, time,date, calendar data, device preferences, map and location data,combinations thereof, and/or the like. The mobile device 700 also caninclude a processor 704 and a memory or other data storage device(“memory”) 706. The processor 704 can be configured to process dataand/or can execute computer-executable instructions stored in the memory706. The computer-executable instructions executed by the processor 704can include, for example, an operating system 708, one or moreapplications 710 such as the augmented reality display application 108,the augmented reality service 112, other computer-executableinstructions stored in a memory 706, or the like. In some embodiments,the applications 710 also can include a UI application (not illustratedin FIG. 7).

The UI application can interface with the operating system 708, such asthe operating system 106 shown in FIG. 1, to facilitate user interactionwith functionality and/or data stored at the mobile device 700 and/orstored elsewhere. In some embodiments, the operating system 708 caninclude a member of the SYMBIAN OS family of operating systems fromSYMBIAN LIMITED, a member of the WINDOWS MOBILE OS and/or WINDOWS PHONEOS families of operating systems from MICROSOFT CORPORATION, a member ofthe PALM WEBOS family of operating systems from HEWLETT PACKARDCORPORATION, a member of the BLACKBERRY OS family of operating systemsfrom RESEARCH IN MOTION LIMITED, a member of the IOS family of operatingsystems from APPLE INC., a member of the ANDROID OS family of operatingsystems from GOOGLE INC., and/or other operating systems. Theseoperating systems are merely illustrative of some contemplated operatingsystems that may be used in accordance with various embodiments of theconcepts and technologies described herein and therefore should not beconstrued as being limiting in any way.

The UI application can be executed by the processor 704 to aid a user inentering content, capturing video or photographs, providing augmentedreality views, correcting position and/or location, configuringsettings, manipulating address book content and/or settings, multimodeinteraction, interacting with other applications 710, and otherwisefacilitating user interaction with the operating system 708, theapplications 710, and/or other types or instances of data 712 that canbe stored at the mobile device 700. The data 712 can include, forexample, the augmented reality data 122, the augmented reality displaydata 116 and/or other applications or program modules. According tovarious embodiments, the data 712 can include, for example, presenceapplications, visual voice mail applications, messaging applications,text-to-speech and speech-to-text applications, add-ons, plug-ins, emailapplications, music applications, video applications, cameraapplications, location-based service applications, power conservationapplications, game applications, productivity applications,entertainment applications, enterprise applications, combinationsthereof, and the like. The applications 710, the data 712, and/orportions thereof can be stored in the memory 706 and/or in a firmware714, and can be executed by the processor 704. The firmware 714 also canstore code for execution during device power up and power downoperations. It can be appreciated that the firmware 714 can be stored ina volatile or non-volatile data storage device including, but notlimited to, the memory 706 and/or a portion thereof.

The mobile device 700 also can include an input/output (“I/O”) interface716. The I/O interface 716 can be configured to support the input/outputof data such as location information, selection of UI controls,orientation information, user information, organization information,presence status information, user IDs, passwords, and applicationinitiation (start-up) requests. In some embodiments, the I/O interface716 can include a hardwire connection such as a universal serial bus(“USB”) port, a mini-USB port, a micro-USB port, an audio jack, a PS2port, an IEEE 1394 (“FIREWIRE”) port, a serial port, a parallel port, anEthernet (RJ45) port, an RJ11 port, a proprietary port, combinationsthereof, or the like. In some embodiments, the mobile device 700 can beconfigured to synchronize with another device to transfer content toand/or from the mobile device 700. In some embodiments, the mobiledevice 700 can be configured to receive updates to one or more of theapplications 710 via the I/O interface 716, though this is notnecessarily the case. In some embodiments, the I/O interface 716 acceptsI/O devices such as keyboards, keypads, mice, interface tethers,printers, plotters, external storage, touch/multi-touch screens, touchpads, trackballs, joysticks, microphones, remote control devices,displays, projectors, medical equipment (e.g., stethoscopes, heartmonitors, and other health metric monitors), modems, routers, externalpower sources, docking stations, combinations thereof, and the like. Itshould be appreciated that the I/0 interface 716 may be used forcommunications between the mobile device 700 and a network device orlocal device.

The mobile device 700 also can include a communications component 718.The communications component 718 can be configured to interface with theprocessor 704 to facilitate wired and/or wireless communications withone or more networks such as the network 104 described herein. In someembodiments, other networks include networks that utilize non-cellularwireless technologies such as WI-FI or WIMAX. In some embodiments, thecommunications component 718 includes a multimode communicationssubsystem for facilitating communications via the cellular network andone or more other networks.

The communications component 718, in some embodiments, includes one ormore transceivers. The one or more transceivers, if included, can beconfigured to communicate over the same and/or different wirelesstechnology standards with respect to one another. For example, in someembodiments one or more of the transceivers of the communicationscomponent 718 may be configured to communicate using GSM, CDMAONE,CDMA2000, LTE, and various other 2G, 2.5G, 3G, 4G, and greatergeneration technology standards. Moreover, the communications component718 may facilitate communications over various channel access methods(which may or may not be used by the aforementioned standards)including, but not limited to, TDMA, FDMA, W-CDMA, OFDM, SDMA, and thelike.

In addition, the communications component 718 may facilitate datacommunications using GPRS, EDGE, the HSPA protocol family includingHSDPA, EUL or otherwise termed HSUPA, HSPA+, and various other currentand future wireless data access standards. In the illustratedembodiment, the communications component 718 can include a firsttransceiver (“TxRx”) 720A that can operate in a first communicationsmode (e.g., GSM). The communications component 718 also can include anN^(th) transceiver (“TxRx”) 720N that can operate in a secondcommunications mode relative to the first transceiver 720A (e.g., UMTS).While two transceivers 720A-N (hereinafter collectively and/orgenerically referred to as “transceivers 720”) are shown in FIG. 7, itshould be appreciated that less than two, two, and/or more than twotransceivers 720 can be included in the communications component 718.

The communications component 718 also can include an alternativetransceiver (“Alt TxRx”) 722 for supporting other types and/or standardsof communications. According to various contemplated embodiments, thealternative transceiver 722 can communicate using various communicationstechnologies such as, for example, WI-FI, WIMAX, BLUETOOTH, infrared,infrared data association (“IRDA”), near field communications (“NFC”),other RF technologies, combinations thereof, and the like. In someembodiments, the communications component 718 also can facilitatereception from terrestrial radio networks, digital satellite radionetworks, internet-based radio service networks, combinations thereof,and the like. The communications component 718 can process data from anetwork such as the Internet, an intranet, a broadband network, a WI-FIhotspot, an Internet service provider (“ISP”), a digital subscriber line(“DSL”) provider, a broadband provider, combinations thereof, or thelike.

The mobile device 700 also can include one or more sensors 724. Thesensors 724 can include temperature sensors, light sensors, air qualitysensors, movement sensors, orientation sensors, noise sensors, proximitysensors, or the like. As such, it should be understood that the sensors724 can include, but are not limited to, accelerometers, magnetometers,gyroscopes, infrared sensors, noise sensors, microphones, combinationsthereof, or the like. Additionally, audio capabilities for the mobiledevice 700 may be provided by an audio I/O component 726. The audio I/Ocomponent 726 of the mobile device 700 can include one or more speakersfor the output of audio signals, one or more microphones for thecollection and/or input of audio signals, and/or other audio inputand/or output devices.

The illustrated mobile device 700 also can include a subscriber identitymodule (“SIM”) system 728. The SIM system 728 can include a universalSIM (“USIM”), a universal integrated circuit card (“UICC”) and/or otheridentity devices. The SIM system 728 can include and/or can be connectedto or inserted into an interface such as a slot interface 730. In someembodiments, the slot interface 730 can be configured to acceptinsertion of other identity cards or modules for accessing various typesof networks. Additionally, or alternatively, the slot interface 730 canbe configured to accept multiple subscriber identity cards. Becauseother devices and/or modules for identifying users and/or the mobiledevice 700 are contemplated, it should be understood that theseembodiments are illustrative, and should not be construed as beinglimiting in any way.

The mobile device 700 also can include an image capture and processingsystem 732 (“image system”). The image system 732 can be configured tocapture or otherwise obtain photos, videos, and/or other visualinformation. As such, the image system 732 can include cameras, lenses,charge-coupled devices (“CCDs”), combinations thereof, or the like. Themobile device 700 may also include a video system 734. The video system734 can be configured to capture, process, record, modify, and/or storevideo content. Photos and videos obtained using the image system 732 andthe video system 734, respectively, may be added as message content toan MMS message, email message, and sent to another mobile device. Thevideo and/or photo content also can be shared with other devices viavarious types of data transfers via wired and/or wireless communicationdevices as described herein.

The mobile device 700 also can include one or more location components736. The location components 736 can be configured to send and/orreceive signals to determine a geographic location of the mobile device700. According to various embodiments, the location components 736 cansend and/or receive signals from global positioning system (“GPS”)devices, assisted-GPS (“A-GPS”) devices, WI-FI/WIMAX and/or cellularnetwork triangulation data, combinations thereof, and the like. Thelocation component 736 also can be configured to communicate with thecommunications component 718 to retrieve triangulation data fordetermining a location of the mobile device 700. In some embodiments,the location component 736 can interface with cellular network nodes,telephone lines, satellites, location transmitters and/or beacons,wireless network transmitters and receivers, combinations thereof, andthe like. In some embodiments, the location component 736 can includeand/or can communicate with one or more of the sensors 724 such as acompass, an accelerometer, and/or a gyroscope to determine theorientation of the mobile device 700. Using the location component 736,the mobile device 700 can generate and/or receive data to identify itsgeographic location, or to transmit data used by other devices todetermine the location of the mobile device 700. The location component736 may include multiple components for determining the location and/ororientation of the mobile device 700.

The illustrated mobile device 700 also can include a power source 738.The power source 738 can include one or more batteries, power supplies,power cells, and/or other power subsystems including alternating current(“AC”) and/or direct current (“DC”) power devices. The power source 738also can interface with an external power system or charging equipmentvia a power I/O component 740. Because the mobile device 700 can includeadditional and/or alternative components, the above embodiment should beunderstood as being illustrative of one possible operating environmentfor various embodiments of the concepts and technologies describedherein. The described embodiment of the mobile device 700 isillustrative, and should not be construed as being limiting in any way.

Based on the foregoing, it should be appreciated that systems andmethods for explorable augmented reality displays have been disclosedherein. Although the subject matter presented herein has been describedin language specific to computer structural features, methodological andtransformative acts, specific computing machinery, and computer-readablemedia, it is to be understood that the concepts and technologiesdisclosed herein are not necessarily limited to the specific features,acts, or media described herein. Rather, the specific features, acts andmediums are disclosed as example forms of implementing the concepts andtechnologies disclosed herein.

The subject matter described above is provided by way of illustrationonly and should not be construed as limiting. Various modifications andchanges may be made to the subject matter described herein withoutfollowing the example embodiments and applications illustrated anddescribed, and without departing from the true spirit and scope of theembodiments of the concepts and technologies disclosed herein.

We claim:
 1. A method comprising: receiving, at a processor executing anaugmented reality service, a request for augmented reality display data,the request being associated with a device; determining, at theprocessor, a geographic location associated with the device;identifying, at the processor, augmented reality data associated withthe geographic location, wherein the augmented reality data comprises anaugmented reality object that is outside of a field of view associatedwith the device; and providing, by the processor and to the device, theaugmented reality display data for display in an explorable augmentedreality display that is configured to display the augmented realityobject in a view that omits a portion of the field of view associatedwith the device, the augmented reality display data comprising theaugmented reality data, wherein the explorable augmented reality displayis configured such that in response to a manipulation of the explorableaugmented reality display, a portion of the field of view is panned offof a visible portion of a screen, a void is displayed on the screen,wherein the void corresponds to a portion of the explorable augmentedreality display that is outside of the field of view and is displayedwhen the portion of the field of view is panned off of the visibleportion of the screen, and the augmented reality object is displayed inthe void.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the geographiclocation associated with the device comprises receiving, with therequest for the augmented reality display data, location data andorientation data that defines a facing direction of the device.
 3. Themethod of claim 2, wherein the location data and the orientation dataare captured by the device.
 4. The method of claim 1, whereindetermining the geographic location associated with the device comprisesaccessing a location server to obtain location data associated with thedevice.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the device comprises asmartphone, and wherein the smartphone executes an augmented realitydisplay application that generates the request and the explorableaugmented reality display.
 6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:obtaining, by the processor, a location update from the device.
 7. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the device is configured to provide acorrection of the geographic location, wherein the correction isobtained by the device by presenting a location correction display andreceiving the correction of the geographic location via the locationcorrection display.
 8. A system comprising: a processor; and a memorythat stores computer-executable instructions that, when executed by theprocessor, cause the processor to perform operations comprisingreceiving a request for augmented reality display data, the requestbeing associated with a device, determining a geographic locationassociated with the device, identifying augmented reality dataassociated with the geographic location, wherein the augmented realitydata comprises an augmented reality object that is outside of a field ofview associated with the device, and providing the augmented realitydisplay data to the device for display in an explorable augmentedreality display that is configured to display the augmented realityobject in a view that omits a portion of the field of view associatedwith the device, the augmented reality display data comprising theaugmented reality data, wherein the explorable augmented reality displayis configured such that in response to a manipulation of the explorableaugmented reality display, a portion of the field of view is panned offof a visible portion of a screen, a void is displayed on the screen,wherein the void corresponds to a portion of the explorable augmentedreality display that is outside of the field of view and is displayedwhen the portion of the field of view is panned off of the visibleportion of the screen, and the augmented reality object is displayed inthe void.
 9. The system of claim 8, wherein the computer-executableinstructions, when executed by the processor, cause the processor toperform operations further comprising: determining an orientation of thedevice, the orientation comprising a facing direction.
 10. The system ofclaim 8, wherein determining the geographic location associated with thedevice comprises receiving, with the request for the augmented realitydisplay data, location data and orientation data that defines a facingdirection of the device.
 11. The system of claim 8, wherein thecomputer-executable instructions, when executed by the processor, causethe processor to perform operations further comprising: obtaining alocation update from the device.
 12. The system of claim 8, wherein thedevice is configured to provide a correction of the geographic location,wherein the correction is obtained by the device by presenting alocation correction display and receiving the correction of thegeographic location via the location correction display.
 13. A computerstorage medium having computer-executable instructions stored thereonthat, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to performoperations comprising: receiving a request for augmented reality displaydata, the request being associated with a device; determining ageographic location associated with the device; identifying augmentedreality data associated with the geographic location, wherein theaugmented reality data comprises an augmented reality object that isoutside of a field of view associated with the device; and providing theaugmented reality display data to the device for display in anexplorable augmented reality display that is configured to display theaugmented reality object in a view that omits a portion of the field ofview associated with the device, the augmented reality display datacomprising the augmented reality data, wherein the explorable augmentedreality display is configured such that in response to a manipulation ofthe explorable augmented reality display, a portion of the field of viewis panned off of a visible portion of a screen, a void is displayed onthe screen, wherein the void corresponds to a portion of the explorableaugmented reality display that is outside of the field of view and isdisplayed when the portion of the field of view is panned off of thevisible portion of the screen, and the augmented reality object isdisplayed in the void.
 14. The computer storage medium of claim 13,wherein the computer-executable instructions, when executed by theprocessor, cause the processor to perform operations further comprising:determining an orientation of the device, the orientation comprising afacing direction.
 15. The computer storage medium of claim 13, whereindetermining the geographic location associated with the device comprisesobtaining location data and orientation data that defines a facingdirection of the device.
 16. The computer storage medium of claim 13,wherein the computer-executable instructions, when executed by theprocessor, cause the processor to perform operations further comprising:obtaining a location update from the device.
 17. The computer storagemedium of claim 13, wherein the device is configured to provide acorrection of the geographic location, wherein the correction isobtained by the device by presenting a location correction display andreceiving the correction of the geographic location via the locationcorrection display.